cion, proved however; fortunately.for me, to be without
foundation.
The filver plate I alfo. purchased from the men that
picked it.up, determined to carry it off as a trophy* and
I have ufèd it, ever fince. Here.we likeyife,:'found three
afkulls fixed upon flakes, the mournful relics, ;of fome
o f our own brave people, who had been formerly kjlled ;
but what furprized us ■ moft, were the; heads -of *• two
young negroes, which feemed as i f frefh ciit off, thefe
we finoe learned had been executed during.ithe; night
the 17th, when we heard the hallooing and-the-firing,'for
fpeaking in our favour,
Having buried all thefe remains promifcuoufly ip one
pit, we returned to fling our hammocks,, under ^hoff
beautiful and lofty trees which 1 have already mentioned
; but here I am lorry to add, we found the rangers
lhockingly employed, in playing at .bowls with thofe
very heads they had juft chopped off from their enemies ;
who, deaf to all remonftrance,
“ Rcfiftlefs drove the hattef-dJkulls before,
<c And daih’d and mangled all the brains with gore.” “
They related that upon reconnoitring the Ikiits o f the
furrounding foreft, they had found quantities of human
blood in different places, which had flowed from the
dead and wounded bodies the rebels had carried away
during the action.
T o reprimand them for this inhuman diverfion would
have
E X P E D I T I O N T O S U R I N A M . h i
have been ufelefs, as they affured us it was <£ Condre CHAP;
66 fdjfee:, ” the- cuftom of their country; and con- . x x \
eluded the horrid fport by kicking and mangling the
heads, cutting off the bps, cheeks, ears, and nofes ;
they even tobk out the jaw-bones, which they fmoke-
driecl, together with the right hands, to carry home*
as ^trophies o f ’ their' vi<ftofy, to th e ir | wives and re^
lations.- That this barbarous cuftom prevails amongfit
fhfagês is a welhknown fa£t;i which originates from a
motive - o f infatiable ' revenge. And though Colonel
•Fourgeoud might have prevented their inhumanity b y
his ‘ authorit y,jj in rny opinion be wifeEy .declined it ob-
fe rvir^ that as he could notfdo it b y 'perfusion, to do
it by power* might break their native fpirit, and produce
no »other effe6fe than alienat-ihg them from the fer-
vibe, fd neceftary were^ ^hdyto- though fo favagely
'f evengefdl, and fo bloody.. ‘
About three orclbck,. whilft we were- refting from our
fatiguey we were Once more furprifed by . an- attack fronai
a party o f the enemy ; but after , exchanging a few fhots
they' were1 repulfed. This ünékpe&ed vifit, however,
put Us more upori our guard during the night, fo that no
•fires were allowed to- be lighted, and double |fehtinels.
were placed around the camp. Thus fituated, being
overcome by exeeflive toil and: beat, I after fun - fet
leaped inta m jc hammock,, and foon fell A f t afleepj: but
in lefs than, two hours* my Taithful; black, .boy, Qu.aco-
loufed me, in.'the. midft of. pitch darknefs,. crying,.
^ MaJJerax